Commission plans for Hwy. 63 payoff party

Friday

Feb 8, 2013 at 11:34 AMFeb 8, 2013 at 11:42 AM

Events set for June along with final 4-laning payment

Taylor Muller/TaylorMullerKDE

The Highway 63 Corporation is ready to celebrate.

Ten years after breaking ground on the four-laning of the 22 miles of Highway 63 from Macon to Kirksville, the local Highway 63 Corp. will welcome the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission to see the growth and progress made since the commission approved the expansion project and Kirksville citizens overwhelmingly backed the local one-half cent sales tax.

The Highway 63 Corp. discussed its celebratory plans, scheduled for June 5, Thursday during its board meeting. That event will coincide with the final payment for the four-laning project.

“We want to celebrate the fact we have a great highway system because of these efforts,“ said board treasurer Don Crosby.

These efforts include the 78 percent approval voters gave to the local sales tax, which was estimated to generate $11.5 million during a 10-year period to pay for the local portion of the expansion.

During Thursday’s meeting the corporation voted to create a committee to plan for the summer-time event which will likely include a banquet for corporation and commission members, as well as a public function portion to allow citizens who have paid the sales tax to also take part in the celebration.

“But for the citizens, who paid for the road, wouldn’t have it without them,” noted city manager and corporation member Mari Macomber.

The project was completed in 2005 and marked a safety and accessibility improvement to Highway 63 and the completion of a project initially proposed more than 40 years ago.

And with the highway commission making the trip to Kirksville, the local corporation is planning on showing off the local landmark education institutions including Truman State, A.T. Still University as well as local industry that have benefited from the expansion.

“It’s very important for [the highway commission] to see the universities because student safety was a large part of this corporation’s creation,” said Board Chair Harriet Beard.

And while the final payment will be made on the four-laning project, local voters approved extending the sales tax to then pay for the Highway 63 bypass that was completed in 2011.

“It’s maybe not as exciting today as when we were building highways, but we still have a job to do,” Beard said.

The group is still eyeing the “Corridor to the Capitols” project, which would connect Des Moines and Jefferson City with a completely four-laned Highway 63. And while the Missouri Department of Transportation has significantly cut back on major project funding, the hope is the “Corridor” may still rank high on the state’s priorities.

The project was one of the top priorities identified by the Regional Planning Commission in late 2012, said Amy Crawford, with MoDOT.

“We don’t know where it will fall, as a state,” she said. “It’s possible the focus may be on major river crossings.”

Crawford also mentioned a state focus on improving I-70 but noted it would not be the only project on MoDOT’s radar.

The northeast district’s RPC recommendations will be presented to MoDOT’s regional planners meeting for consideration.